


The Magician And the Wolf

by Emeryuu



Series: My Home Is With You (Pynch Week 2016) [1]
Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Curses, First Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Magic, injuries
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-13
Updated: 2016-08-13
Packaged: 2018-08-08 12:05:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7757224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emeryuu/pseuds/Emeryuu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“We can’t lift the curse, but we can change how it works,” explained Maura as the whole court gathered in the throne room. “We can alter the curse in a way so a true love can lift it.”</p><p>“What does this mean?” asked queen Aurora in a worried voice.</p><p>“When prince Ronan will meet his one and true love, the curse will be lifted and he’ll regain his form as a human. That’s all I can offer,” Maura bowed graciously.</p><p> * * *<br/>Pynch Week 2016, day one: Fairy Tale AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Magician And the Wolf

**Author's Note:**

> First part of my Pynch Week 2016 series, hope you'll like it.
> 
> Beta-ed by wonderful Alice (shh_go_to_sleep), who made this fic presentable <3

Once upon a time, in the Kingdom of Henrietta, lived a prince named Ronan. Ronan lived happily in a big palace with his parents, who loved him, his older brother, who was often annoyed by him, and  little brother, who adored him.

Because Ronan was the king’s and queen’s favorite, he was allowed more freedom than the crown prince, Declan. While Declan had to spent time learning how to rule a kingdom, Ronan was free to run wild in the forest surrounding the palace or play with the youngest prince, Matthew.

He spent his days horse racing with other young noblemen or taking care of his pet raven called Chainsaw. But despite having everything, prince Ronan wasn’t happy. He wanted to leave the palace, to run a little farm in a village and dedicate his life to cows and cropping. The only one who knew about that was Noah, but Noah was the ghost of the boy who had died in a tragic accident in the palace years ago. Ronan and his father were ones of the few able to see him. Ronan would spend many sleepless nights going on walks with Noah and watching the stars.

“I don’t belong here,” Ronan used to say.

 

* * *

 

He didn’t like glamorous parties his mother organized, nor was he interested in knowing how royal treasury worked or even in joining the army. He avoided all that with everything he had.

But one time, he wasn’t lucky. One sunny morning a group of famous witches visited the palace. The king invited them to celebrate the queen’s birthday. There were six witches in the group, the youngest two were close to the princes’ age.

Blue was the daughter of Maura, one of the group’s three leaders. Blue wasn’t really a witch, but she had her own special power: she could amplify the magic of witches around her. Ronan liked her since the moment she was introduced to him; the girl was smart and being around royalty didn’t intimidate her. If anything, it seemed to make her talk more about politics and how the kingdom should change.

Unfortunately for Ronan, she was quickly monopolized by Gansey, Ronan’s best friend and companion. As the prince stood on the balcony, he watched Blue and Gansey dance in the middle of the ballroom. Blue’s frilly pink dress swirled around both of them as they circled the room.  Noah was silent next to Ronan; he never talked anymore when there were people around. He used to when they were kids, but Ronan would get strange looks from adults, so he stopped. The peaceful silence between the two was interrupted by Orla, Blue’s cousin.

She found Ronan handsome and wanted to get close to him. Ronan managed to avoid her and her advances all day, but now he had nowhere to escape.

“Your Highness! I didn’t expect to find you here.” Orla smiled.

“I wanted to breathe some fresh air. Alone.” Ronan wasn’t one for delicacy; he didn’t bother to hide his displeasure with Orla’s presence.

Orla pretended to ignore the implication and approached Ronan, standing so close, she almost touched him.

“The night is so beautiful. The stars shine so brightly. Let’s go for a walk, shall we?” Orla put her hand on Ronan’s arm, cocking her head to the side questioningly.

“It rained this afternoon, the grass will be wet and the alleys full of mud. I would rather stay here where it is dry.” Ronan was irritated.

“You are right, I wouldn’t want to destroy my dress.” Orla gestured down at herself. “Then, maybe we could dance? I heard from prince Declan that you are an amazing dancer.”

“I don’t feel like dancing. But don’t mind me, my lady, I’m sure you’ll find a partner without a problem.”

Orla’s smile vanished, but she didn’t give up. She asked and asked. She tried to offer Ronan to bring him sweets, she wanted to go dancing. Ronan kept declining.

“Are you trying to get rid of me?” Orla couldn’t pretend she didn’t saw it anymore.

“And here I thought you couldn’t get a clue and I’d have to spell it for you.” Ronan smiled, but it wasn’t a nice smile. It was a mocking grin and seeing it made Orla angry.

“That’s uncalled for, your highness. I was just trying to be nice and get to know you. But it must be too much to ask of someone like you.” Orla took a step back from Ronan and glared at him. “A weird prince who doesn’t socialize, who talks to the air around him when he’s alone, who keeps a raven as a pet. Fine. I’ll live you to your solitude you value so high.  _ If you really- _ “

“Orla, aunt Jimi is asking for you.” Suddenly Blue appeared in the door leading to the ballroom, but Orla continued without acknowledging her.

“ _ -want to be such a lone wolf, then you shall remain as him for the rest of your life! _ ”

Before Ronan could respond to Orla’s outburst, he felt a shot of pain in his head. From there it spread to his whole body making him sway on his legs. In a distance Ronan heard Blue screaming something and Noah panicked voice. He couldn’t keep his eyes open and soon, the darkness engulfed him.

* * *

 

Ronan woke up from a feverish dream in his bedroom. There were Ronan’s brothers and Gansey gathered around his bed. The witches were arguing about something in the background.

“Ronan!” Gansey started to step closer to his friend, but stopped. “How are you feeling?” he asked, unsure.

Ronan almost jumped in surprise as he heard the noise he himself made. It was something between  a bark and a squeak.  

“Right, stupid question,” Gansey nodded like Ronan barking was a normal thing.

“Ronan,” Declan sat on the edge of the bed. “It’s fine, you’re safe. There’s no need to be scared. It’s a matter of time before the witches will be able to reverse the curse.”

The curse? Ronan cocked his head to the side in question; he didn’t want to risk opening his mouth again.

“It’s hard to explain,” said Declan. He sent his brother a sad smile. “It’ll be better to just show you, but please, stay calm.”

Declan reached to the bedside and grabbed a mirror, which Ronan recognized as his mother’s. He showed it to Ronan’s face so he could see his reflection.

What he saw in the mirror made him freeze. There was no longer prince Ronan, a tall lad with handsome face and tattoos better suited for a pirate. Instead of him, on Ronan’s bed sat a huge, grey wolf.

 

* * *

 

Ronan’s curse couldn’t be lifted. Orla refused to do it, saying that it wouldn’t be a lesson to Ronan if he could get away easily. The truth was, as Blue shared with Gansey in secret, that Orla didn’t even plan to put a curse on the prince and in the effect, she had no idea how to lift it. It was a bad luck that made it happen: the combination of Orla’s wrath and Blue’s amplifying power completed with wrong words led to this outcome. Now Orla refused to acknowledge her mistake.

And Ronan suffered. The only good thing his new form was for, was that he could scare Orla anytime they crossed their paths in the palace.

After few days of discussion the witches decided how to help Ronan.

“We can’t lift the curse, but we can change how it works,” explained Maura as the whole court gathered in the throne room. “We can alter the curse in a way so a true love can lift it.”

“What does this mean?” asked queen Aurora in a worried voice.

“When prince Ronan will meet his one and true love, the curse will be lifted and he’ll regain his form as a human. That’s all I can offer,” Maura bowed graciously.

“I shall offer my help as well,” said Carla, another witch. “Being a wolf might make it hard for you to meet your love. And thus, I’ll make you human during the night and wolf during the day.”

“The World is a vast place,” added a third witch, Perspehone. “I’ll give you leads where you should look for your love.”

“We accept your offer,” decided king Niall. “Help my son. When that’s done we’ll say our goodbyes to him.”

It happened as he said. The witches cast their spells on Ronan, as he sat in the middle of the throne room. When they finished, Persephone crouched in front of him and said, “In the west, there’s a forest. The trees speak Latin there, that is the place where your love awaits.”

Awaits? Ronan asked himself. Do they know I’ll come?

“No, my prince. But you are much needed there.” Persephone leaned forward and kissed Ronan between his eyes. “For good luck,” she explained.

 

* * *

 

Noah left the palace with Ronan. They couldn’t talk, because Noah couldn’t hear him like Persephone seemed to do, but the ghost refused to let his friend go alone. Chainsaw also followed, alternating between flying and spending parts of their journey perched on Ronan’s head.

They traveled for days. At nights, when Ronan changed into human, they camped around a small fire. They couldn’t have any baggage, but they were able to take care of themselves. Chainsaw brought fruits and mushrooms to Ronan when he changed into human, so he could eat. Soon they fell into easy routine. 

At the end of their second week of traveling across the country, they reached a forest. They passed other forests on the way, but that one was different. Ronan could feel the power of that place. The forest seemed older and thicker than others. It was also darker, but not scary. The shadows didn’t look intimidating, but rather peaceful.

As they went in, Ronan heard a choir of voices.

_ “Salve, Greywaren.” _

“ _ Greywaren _ ? What does it mean? Are they talking about you?” asked Noah, looking around curiously.

The trees kept repeating the greeting as Ronan and his companions went further into the forest. The sun went down and stars were shining on the sky, but Ronan didn’t stop. He felt something pulling him toward the heart of the forest. The night passed and the Sun raised again.

It was not long after noon when Ronan and Noah reached the clearing with a cottage standing in the middle of it. Before they were able to go there and knock on the door, a young man came out and looked straight at them.

“What is a ghost, a wolf and a raven doing in Cabeswater?” he asked.

“You can see me?” Noah was surprised.

“Yes, I can. I’m the Magician of Cabeswater, I’ve seen many things in my life.” The man couldn’t be older than Ronan, but the shadow in his eyes indicated that he indeed had seen a lot.

“This is my friend, Ronan. He was cursed by a jealous witch to become a wolf. We were told to come here to lift the curse.”

“I don’t take care of curses, you’ve been led wrong.”

“Um, no. It’s not like that,” Noah was getting nervous. “Ronan needs to find the true love, only then the curse will be lifted. Persephone, a friendly witch, told us to come here, that here is what Ronan is searching for.”

The Magician of Cabeswater was stunned. He kept looking between Noah and Ronan as if to see if they were joking, but they were not and he believed that.

“But I’m the only one living here, I’m sorry. Sometimes, travelers or merchants pass, but it’s not often. There’s no one who could be your love,” he directed last words at Ronan. 

“But-“ Noah furrowed his brow, but stopped. “So what are we going to do now?” He too looked at Ronan.

Ronan ignored most of the conversation. He looked at the wizard, the Magician of Cabeswater, and couldn’t believe what he saw. This young man in front of him was the most beautiful person Ronan had ever seen. His high cheekbones made him look so refined, but his messy hair gave away that he spent most of his time not among nobility, but in the wild.

It’s him, it’s him, it’s him, his heart was sure. But then reality hit Ronan.  _ But I’m not the one for him. _

The Magician disregarded the possibility that he might be the one Ronan was told to look for. He didn’t even thought this could be a possibility.

“Fate brought you here for a reason,” said the Magician. “Stay here, maybe Cabeswater will show you the way. I feel the trees already like you, I’ve never seen them so happy about anything.”

“We are grateful,” said Noah.

“Don’t mention it. Now, come, I think I have some meat for your friend, he must be tired.” The Magician gestured toward the cottage. “Oh, I never introduced myself,” he realized. “I’m Adam.”

 

* * *

 

The night came and Ronan turned human again. Adam waited for it to happen, because Noah told him everything about the curse. While the ghost was off to the forest to explore Cabeswater, Adam waited to meet Ronan properly.

One moment there was a wolf sitting in front of the cottage and in the next it was replaced by a tall handsome prince. Adam didn’t know what he had expected, but it wasn’t that. He didn’t know prince Ronan would look more like a mercenary or a pirate, if the tattoos he glimpsed on his neck were anything to go by.

“Prince Ronan, nice to meet you,” he greeted.

“We already met,” Ronan arched one brow.

“Ah, yes. Should I say then that it’s nice to talk to you?”

“That would be more likely. But you don’t have to pretend for my sake.” Ronan kicked a small stone lying close to him in the grass. 

He tried to ignore noticing how Adam’s eyes shined in the moonlight or how his hands rubbed against each other in the evening chill. Adam had nice hands, with long fingers like a musician, but calloused for the hard work.

Adam grinned. “Am I that obvious? I don’t like royalty very much, nothing good came for me from interacting with them.”

“Especially with the ones looking like thugs?” Ronan watched Adam from the corner of his eye.

“I’d never compare a prince to such individuals.” Adam didn’t believe he convinced Ronan. He held his breath waiting for reaction.

Ronan laughed loudly. “Of course not, you are too polite to do that.”

Adam surprised himself and laughed too.

 

* * *

 

The next few days passed in a steady rhythm. During the day, Adam went to the forest, accompanied by Ronan and Chainsaw. Noah refused going with them, explaining that Cabeswater’s powers made him feel slightly sick, so he preferred to stay close to the cottage.

During those travels Adam talked to Cabeswater and looked for places that needed help – be it animals trapped by poachers or the flow of magic, which was very strong in this forest and could be stopped by littlest things like stones falling into the stream.

At nights Adam and Ronan talked; sometimes they did so for so long that the dawn interrupted them by changing Ronan into a wolf mid-sentence. 

Adam told Ronan about Cabeswater. About his childhood as a son of the wheelwright that hadn’t been interested in learning his father’s profession, but hearing the call from the forest far away. He told Ronan how he escaped one night and traveled alone, without money or food to Cabeswater and how he had become its Magician. How he built a home here.

Ronan wasn’t very talkative - he preferred to listen to Adam talking - but eventually he told the Magician about his travels, about magical things he brought home from all his adventures. He told him about all places he saw and how he hated the palace, how he felt free only when he was in the saddle, hearing nothing but the wind as he run through the hills. How the stables were his favorite place in the palace.

They traded stories and when they had no more to trade, they talked about other things. About school Adam always dreamed to attend, about Chainsaw and why Ronan loved her. About their favorite colors, about their favorite food, about how being a wolf was tiring or exciting sometimes.

Day by day they got closer to each other without noticing.

Adam’s cottage now was their cottage. In the corner there was a violin Ronan liked to play at nights, when they were watching the stars. The table was set for dinner for two people.

Adam couldn’t believe that, but Ronan seemed interested in him. He kept looking at Adam all the time, no matter the form he was in. When he was a human the emotion in his eyes was something Adam never expected to be directed at him. It was like standing in the sunlight and heavy rain at the same time, it was like waiting for a storm one knew would appear.

Adam knew Ronan looked at him, because he looked at Ronan as much, if not more. He was awed by him in wolf body – his strength, his grace. And he loved him in his human body – with his sharp tongue and biting words, but lacking true malice, his caring hands when he cradled Chainsaw to his chest as the raven fell asleep on him.

Ronan could feel that there was something building between him and Adam. He could feel it in a way Adam laid his hand on Ronan’s side when they napped in the afternoon during their travels through the forest. In Adam’s fingers petting his fur, delicate as breeze.

He was afraid of speaking this aloud, but with each morning, each twilight, he loved Adam more and more. But he said nothing. He still was a wolf so there must be something that should be yet done. Ronan wasn’t sure if it was a confession that would end his curse, but it lost importance to him. He was happy spending his days with Adam and Noah lurking around, acting like a ghost for once in his life after death.

 

* * *

 

Ronan should have known it wouldn’t last. Happiness always comes with a price.

Cabeswater called to Adam suddenly one morning.

A poacher, Adam said listening to what trees were telling him. The one that kills Glendower’s deer.

Glendower’s deer were magical creatures living in Cabeswater for centuries. They were familiars of a very powerful king Glendower and after his death they protected the path to his hidden tomb. Ronan knew all about Glendower because of Gansey who loved history and especially the said king’s reign.

From time to time, poachers appeared and tried to capture the deer. Most of them ended dead, killed by deer themselves or by Cabeswater hands, which meant Adam. Very few survived the adventure.

But this one poacher, Whelk, was dangerous. His wife was a witch and she supported him in his action, giving him talismans and enchanted weapon. Thus, Cabeswater needed Adam.

The two of them left as soon as Adam gathered his magical supplies. Led by trees shouting in Latin, they reached the northern side of the forest, where they found the man hiding in the bushes. Whelk was observing the deer sleeping on the other bank of the river. 

“Leave now in peace or I’ll have to use force,” Adam threatened, standing a few meters behind the poacher.

Whelk turned around and looked at him. He held a gun in his hand.

“O-Okay! There’s no need for violence.” He moved to put the gun on the ground but right before he set it, he jerked it back and shot.

Before Adam could react, something big and furry hit him in the chest, throwing him off balance. He fell on his back with Ronan lying on top of him. 

Adam couldn’t get up and Ronan wasn’t moving. There was something wet coating Adam’s fingers where he touched the wolf. He could hear Whelk trying to run away, so he did the first thing he thought of -he asked Cabeswater for help.

“Cabeswater, stop him! He hurt Ronan!  _ He hurt Ronan! _ ” He put all his fear and anger in those words. He didn’t even have to see branches and vines coming to life to know they were attacking the poacher. His screams were enough, Whelk had no chance.

Adam scrambled from under Ronan. There was a wound in the wolf’s side that kept bleeding. Ronan was barely conscious.

“Stay awake, you hear me?” Adam was frantic. “Don’t you dare close your eyes, Ronan.”

Adam tried to examine Ronan’s wound, but stopped when the wolf howled in pain. Adam started talking in Latin. He asked the trees for help, he pleaded them to save Ronan. He reminded them he was their eyes and hands, that he gave them everything he had. Saving Ronan was the least they could do to reward him.

“Please,” he almost cried looking at barely conscious wolf in front of him. “I love you. I love you and I refuse to let you go like that.”

Ronan’s wolf form started glowing, green-gold light pouring from the trees surrounded him. Before Adam could understand what was happening, Ronan was lying there changed into human again. It was noon.

_ “Forsan et haec olim meminisse juvabit,” _ whispered Ronan, looking at Adam with soft eyes. The wound in his side was nothing more than a pink scar.

Adam lunged forward a hugged Ronan, grabbing him tightly as if to reassure himself that the prince was fine.

“You asshole, don’t do this again,” he muttered with his lips pressed to Ronan’s shoulder.

“I won’t, dying isn’t fun. I love you too.” Ronan smiled.

Together, they stood up and went back to their cottage, holding hands all the way there. 

And from then on they lived happily ever after.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Kudos and comments are always appreciated <3


End file.
